Pletcher's Peter Pan duo have complementary running styles

ELMONT, N.Y. – Promise Keeper and Overtook give trainer Todd Pletcher a complementary one-two punch in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park, the local stepping-stone to the Belmont Stakes, to be run here June 5.

In Promise Keeper, Pletcher sends out a horse who will likely be forwardly placed in the field of six, which could reduce to five if trainer Chad Brown opts to run potential Peter Pan favorite Risk Taking in the Preakness on May 15.

Promise Keeper, a son of Constitution, is coming off a visually-impressive 5 1/2-length victory in a first-level allowance at Keeneland going 1 1/8 miles around two turns. That enabled him to rebound from a dismal last-place showing in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby on March 6.

“He’s a horse that probably wants to be involved,” said Pletcher, adding that in Tampa, Promise Keeper “didn’t get away great, never really got into the flow of the race, probably didn’t love the surface at Tampa, I guess.

:: Get Mike Beer and David Aragona’s Betting Strategies for Saturday’s card at Belmont Park

“He trained well after that, I thought the allowance race at Keeneland was impressive.”

The last time Promise Keeper ran in a one-turn race, he was a front-running five-length winner of a one-mile maiden race in the slop at Gulfstream Park.

“I don’t think he needs two turns. I do think he’ll appreciate the mile and an eighth,” Pletcher said. “I could see him being on the pace.”

Luis Saez rides Promise Keeper from post 3.

Overtook won a one-mile maiden race at Aqueduct on Dec. 20, then finished second behind Risk Taking in the Grade 3 Withers, also at Aqueduct, on Feb. 6. Pletcher took Overtook to Florida to train and was planning to send him back for the Wood Memorial. Pletcher didn’t like the way Overtook was training so he backed off the son of Curlin for the month of March.

“His works were not what we were looking for. That’s when we decided the Wood was going to happen too soon and kind of regrouped and backed off a little bit and started targeting the Peter Pan,” Pletcher said. “It looks like it made a difference. He’s training much better now.”

Pletcher said he views Overtook as “a grinder who would benefit from some pace.”

John Velazquez rides Overtook from the rail.

Risk Taking won a maiden race and then the Withers when stretched out around two turns at 1 1/8 miles. He finished a lackluster seventh as the favorite in the Wood Memorial, taking him out of consideration for the Kentucky Derby.

When evaluating Risk Taking’s best chance to be a factor in a Triple Crown race, trainer Chad Brown initially thought the Belmont Stakes would be the right race. He is having some second thoughts and is now considering the Preakness. Brown wants to get more of a line on the Preakness field before deciding where to run Risk Taking, who drew the outside in the Peter Pan.

Irad Ortiz Jr. is named to ride Risk Taking.

Nova Rags was second in the Sam F. Davis and then fourth in the Florida Derby. Trainer Bill Mott said he’s not sure whether it was the distance or the competition that compromised Nova Rags in the Florida Derby.

:: Enhance your handicapping with DRF’s Belmont Park Clocker Report

“I guess we just got to try him at this trip one more time and see how the outcome is,” Mott said. “If it works, if the mile and an eighth is okay for him, it’ll keep a few more options open for him later on.”

Mott said he is not necessarily using this as a stepping-stone to the Belmont.

Wolfie’s Dynaghost has not run since winning a seven-furlong maiden race at Aqueduct in November at odds of 33-1. He, too, could be a pace factor breaking from post 4 under Jose Ortiz.

I Am the Law, a maiden after a third and a second in two starts going a one-turn mile, completes the field.

The Peter Pan goes as race 9 on an 11-race card that begins at 1 p.m.